Impact Evaluation Specialist

WFP - World Food Programme; Roma; On-site; EUR 70,000 - 95,000; Full time

Job summary

World Food Programme in Rome seeks an Impact Evaluation Specialist to strengthen climate and resilience evidence. You will design and manage evaluations, coordinate with country offices and partners, and ensure rigorous analysis.

The role requires a master’s degree and at least 6 years of experience, with proficiency in Stata/R/SPSS and the ability to bridge academic and policy audiences. Fluency in English and an intermediate UN language are expected.

Qualifications

• Masters degree in economics, political science, development studies, or related field.
• Minimum of 6 years’ professional experience supporting delivery and quality of impact evaluations.
• Experience managing Randomized Control Trials is a plus.
• Experience working with UN and multilateral agencies is a plus.
• Fluency in English with intermediate knowledge of a second official UN language.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate and manage the Climate and Resilience Impact Evaluation Window (20%).
• Lead design of impact evaluations using best practices and oversee IRB approvals.
• Support data collection, analysis, and reporting across evaluation stages.
• Engage with country offices and stakeholders to ensure timely execution.

Skills

Quantitative analysis

Research design

Statistical software

Education

Masters degree in economics, political science, development studies or related field

Doctoral degree considered an advantage

Tools

Stata

R

SPSS

Job description

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS 31 October 2026-23:59-GMT+01:00 Central European Time (Rome)

WFP celebrates and embraces diversity. It is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status or disability.

ABOUT WFP

The World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity, for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of extreme weather shocks. At WFP, people are at the heart of everything we do and the vision of the future WFP workforce is one of diverse, committed, skilled, and high performing teams, selected on merit, operating in a healthy and inclusive work environment, living WFP's values (Integrity, Collaboration, Commitment, Humanity, and Inclusion) and working with partners to save and change the lives of those WFP serves. To learn more about WFP, visit our website: https://www.wfp.org and follow us on social media to keep up with our latest news: YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok.

WHY JOIN WFP?

WFP is a 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate. WFP offers a highly inclusive, diverse, and multicultural working environment. WFP invests in the personal & professional development of its employees through a range of training, accreditation, coaching, mentorship, and other programs as well as through internal mobility opportunities. A career path in WFP provides an exciting opportunity to work across the various country, regional and global offices around the world, and with passionate colleagues who work tirelessly to ensure that effective humanitarian assistance reaches millions of people across the globe. We offer an attractive compensation package (please refer to the Terms and Conditions section of this vacancy announcement).

JOB TITLE: Impact Evaluation Specialist

TYPE OF CONTRACT: CSLT Regular (Level 2)

UNIT/DIVISION: Office of Evaluation, Impact Evaluation Unit

DUTY STATION (City, Country): Rome, Italy

DURATION: 11 months

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT:

As the largest humanitarian agency in the world, WFP is committed to generating rigorous impact evaluation evidence to better understand the needs of the people they serve and to support them in transitioning out of food insecurity. WFP’s 2022 Evaluation Policy defines impact evaluations as measuring changes in development outcomes of interest for a target population that can be attributed to a specific programme or policy through a credible counterfactual. Impact evaluations have already significantly altered the way the world understands poverty and the effectiveness of development interventions. But humanitarian and transitional development contexts have not yet benefitted from the same level of impact evaluation evidence. The Impact Evaluation Strategy (2019-2026) lays out WFP's vision for increasing the coverage and use of rigorous impact evaluations in humanitarian and development settings, highlighting the organization's renewed commitment to generating operationally relevant evidence of global significance. This position will help WFP respond to growing demand from host countries, donors and policymakers for high-quality impact evaluation evidence. Impact evaluations are delivered by WFP’s Office of Evaluation (OEV) at the request of country offices. They are usually undertaken during programme implementation over a multi-year period. Impact evaluations are delivered in line with corporate evidence priorities through impact evaluation “windows”. These windows are portfolios of impact evaluations in specific priority evidence areas, agreed with WFP management, which will be updated over time as the organization’s evidence priorities change.Current impact evaluation windows include:

• cash-based transfer and gender
• climate and resilience
• school-based programmes

This position will primarily support the Climate and Resilience Window.

ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Support the coordination and management of the WFP’s Climate and Resilience Impact Evaluation Window (20%): Together with the team and other stakeholders, contribute to defining future evidence priorities and impact evaluation research questions. Lead or support the delivery of window level deliverables, including data management and analysis, briefs, and academic papers. Develop and maintain IE management tools, data banks, e‑library, information, and archive systems for assigned work (including in SharePoint and Teams).
2. Lead or contribute to the delivery of impact evaluations under the Climate and Resilience Window (70%): Lead the design of the impact evaluation in accordance with best practices as well as WFP Process Guide. Impact evaluations should use context appropriate methods of analysis and data collection tools and innovate accordingly whenever necessary. Lead or contribute to the procurement of Institutional Review Board (IRB) approvals. Support the procurement of data collection firms and support data collection activities in a manner that is best suited for the impact evaluation and has the potential for meeting other WFP monitoring and evaluation needs. Assist in the design, revision, and support the programming of household survey questionnaires. Lead or support data analysis in accordance with agreed impact evaluation designs and within timeframes that maximise the opportunity for evidence to be used in WFP and other partners decision‑making processes. Lead the day‑to‑day engagement with field coordinators and other stakeholders at country and regional office level. Produce or review detailed reports that outline impact evaluation activities and findings at the inception, mid‑line(s), and end line of each impact evaluation, in accordance with WFP guidance and templates. Support the quality assurance and peer review processes for impact evaluation reports. Lead or support the design and dissemination workshops and undertake field visits as required to support impact evaluation related activities.
3. Any other duties assigned by the Head of the Impact Evaluation Unit (10%).

DELIVERABLES AT THE END OF THE CONTRACT:

1. Effective engagements with country offices and stakeholders to deliver on the climate and resilience window deliverables;
2. Effective feasibility discussions with the priority countries to co‑create impact evaluations;
3. Successful management of 3 to 4 impact evaluations;
4. Clear and effective impact evaluation communications outputs.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:

Education:

• Masters degree in academic disciplines relevant to the assignment (economics, political science, development studies, etc.). A doctoral degree is considered an advantage.

Experience:

• A minimum of 6 years’ professional experience supporting the delivery and quality of impact evaluations, and preferably with exposure to climate/resilience impact evaluations or research.
• Experience managing Randomized Control Trials in the field is considered a plus.
• Experience working with UN and multilateral agencies is considered a plus.

Knowledge & Skills:

• Excellent research skills
• Solid knowledge of quantitative methods used for identifying and measuring impacts (e.g. survey design, implicit association tests, etc.).
• Proficiency in using statistical software packages (Stata, R, SPSS, etc.).
• Fully computer‑literate with excellent skills in Word, Excel, Power Point and database management.
• Strong interpersonal skills with demonstrated ability to work effectively and sensitively in diverse teams. Experience working with government partners is desirable.
• Strong organizational and planning skills to manage multi‑partner workplans. Ability to track implementation progress and ensure timely follow‑up.
• Adapt in bringing together diverse stakeholders and facilitating collaborative decision‑making.
• Excellent written, verbal and visual communication skills. Ability to effectively bridge academic and practitioner audiences.
• Well organised and systematic.

Languages:

• Fluency (level C) in English language.
• Intermediate knowledge (level B) of a second official UN language is a requirement.

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REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION

WFP is committed to supporting individuals with disabilities by providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation, please contact: [e-mail]

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